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Builders and real estate experts from both the new and resale home sectors are banding together to warn consumers - and politicians - they are worried about the skyrocketing costs of housing.

After almost a decade of finding “creative ways” to build more affordable housing — more condos rather than costly low-rise houses, and suites that now average just 767 square feet compared to 908 square feet in 2006 — developers fear they are hitting a wall.

“While we will continue to innovate where we can, innovation alone will not address the challenge of affordability,” said Steve Deveaux, chair of the Building Industry and Land Development Association at a joint media briefing with the Toronto Real Estate Board Wednesday.

“The building/development and real estate industries are worried about our ability to design and build and sell homes that people - especially first-time buyers - can afford.”

The average price of a new detached home is now close to $1 million — $962,312, said Deveaux. That means a buyer with a 20 per cent down payment would need an annual income of $174,854 to service a mortgage.

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The average family income in the Toronto area in 2013 was $107,200, according to Statistics Canada, said Deveaux.

Land transfer taxes, development charges and other fees imposed by both the provincial and municipal governments now account for about 20 per cent of the cost of new homes in the GTA, they say.

And there are fears cash-strapped municipalities outside of Toronto will soon be able to charge their own land transfer tax, adding more costs to homeowners.

The lack of serviced land ready for development, outdated zoning bylaws which lead to lengthy and costly fights to get building approvals, are all contributing to the escalating costs of new housing, said Bryan Tuckey, the president and CEO of BILD.

The first reports from the province’s 10-year review of its Greenbelt and Places to Grow Legislation are expected in a few weeks. Builders claim the policy aimed at easing sprawl has led to more highrise development at the expense of more suburban developments. It’s time for the province to explain the impact those policies have had on prices, said Tuckey.

On the surface, the market appears to be doing just fine: A record number of home sales are expected across the GTA this year, with more than 124,000 new and resale transactions recorded as of Oct. 31 alone.

But builders are seeing more people forced to “drive until they qualify” for houses a killer commute from work. Or, they are walking out of sales offices in frustration over homes they cannot longer afford, said BILD.

In an attempt to get a sense of buyer concern, BILD commissioned an Ipsos poll in August.

Some 1,500 GTA residents, some of them owners, some of them potential buyers and some renters, cited their concerns around housing affordability.

About 70 per cent of owners said they are concerned about their ability to move up. But concerns about affordability jumped to 84 per cent among those who hope to buy in the next two years.

Renters were also on high alert, with some 82 per cent indicating they are concerned about their ability to afford a home.

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